Tyson Mowrey, 9, looks over Seattle SuperSonics ballcaps as he shops in the team store Thursday, July 10, 2008, in Seattle, one week after the settlement allowing the Sonics to move to Oklahoma City. (Elaine Thompson/AP)
News that Seattle could be getting a new NBA team and maybe an NHL franchise is creating a buzz in neighbouring Vancouver.
Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn is reportedly expected to hold a news conference on Thursday to release details of a possible plan for a new basketball stadium downtown.
There is still a lot of work to be done on the proposal, but the Seattle Times is reporting McGinn has been meeting with San Francisco hedge fund manager Chris Hansen to discuss details of a possible plan for the stadium.
Hansen, 44, grew up in Seattle and reportedly wants to bring professional basketball back to the Emerald City. He has already reportedly bought property near the city's baseball and football stadiums.
That alone is big news for sports fans in Metro Vancouver, but the bigger news might be the possibility of an NHL rival for the Canucks within driving distance.
Hansen told the Seattle Times an NHL team is a possibility, but would require another partner.
A hockey team would help offset the cost of a $400 million arena and there has been much discussion in recent years about a need to relocate the NHL franchise currently in Phoenix.
Seattle has never had an full-fledged NHL team, but in 1917 the Seattle Metropolitans, who were playing in the Pacific Coast Hockey Association, became the first American team to win the Stanley Cup when they defeated the National Hockey Association's Montreal Canadians.
The city did have an NBA team until the SuperSonics left in 2008 because the owners could not find a new arena for the team.
